In The End
by Xenos Kadmia
Summary: Cagalli broke up with Athrun leaving him poor but with an unsurpassed determination to win her heart once more. Will he succeed? Rather OOC. Asucag.
1. The Beginning of the End

**In The End**

"_I'm sorry, Athrun, but I don't think this will work out."_

_Those words broke my heart. _

_They broke my wallet._

_But they weren't enough to break my determination. _

"_So, you're leaving?"_

"_I guess so, Alex and I will be leaving for the PLANTS in a couple of hours."_

_It was ironic really, the man she left me for had my pseudonym. It made me wonder if beneath all that, she may still love me. _

"_Are you sure its really over?" I asked, still unwilling to believe._

"_Yes it is, Athrun. Why don't you find yourself a job somewhere? There are jobs here for Coordinators which pay good salary."_

"_I guess I might," I said in defeat, "I'll be seeing you around, Cagalli."_

"_Hey, Athrun," she called out._

"_Yeah?" I said as I turned around to look back at her._

_She gave me a small kiss, maybe the last one._

"_Bye."_

"_Goodbye, Cagalli."_

That memory played over and over in my head for the past six months. It had been six months since she broke up with me and six months since I did nothing with my life but sulk in my dingy one-bedroom apartment.

I didn't know what was wrong with me, I still had my looks, any woman would fall for that. I could get myself a job with a good salary, just like Cagalli suggested. In fact, I could get up right now and go visit, Kira or Dearka or Yzak.

But I didn't.

Because I was thinking about her.

Again.

Who knew love could ruin someone to this extent?

Despite her being engaged to another man, Alex, I still love her. She may not know it, but I do. I might not have million-dollar businesses or bank accounts worth more than half of Orb but I love her and that's what's important, right?

I allowed another month of sulk and solitude to pass by, the only good thing was that I had the guts to get up and get myself a job. It wasn't that high paying but it was enough to get me a bigger apartment and to sustain myself comfortably.

When I was unpacking the last box of my things, Kira decided to pay a visit.

"Hey, Athrun," he said as his cheery face appeared in the doorway.

"Oh, hi Kira. What brings you here?"

"I heard Cagalli broke up with you."

"Oh," was all I could say. This issue again, just as I started to get my life straight, she comes up.

"Don't worry about it, Athrun, I'm sure you can find yourself another girl."

"Yeah, I might."

"Come on, listen, I know this girl, her name is Calista and she's really nice, why don't the two of you get together?"

"Calista, hm?" From the name, I knew that it wouldn't work out already. She reminded me too much about Cagalli and it would be likely that I would expect too much from this Calista.

"I'll see about it, I think I should just get myself settled down first." I said, not wanting to disappoint Kira.

"Great, you do that. And about my sister…" Kira started, going back to Cagalli.

"Listen, she likes to get her way most of the time and as you know, she's as stubborn as a blunt can opener so just move on."

"But is she happy?"

"With Alex?"

"Yup," I said, flinching at my namesake.

"She sure is," Kira said unsurely, not knowing if my reaction would be good or bad.

To his surprise, I said, "That's great. For as long as she's happy…."

Kira smiled. "Well, I'll be seeing you Athrun."

"Goodbye, Kira."

When I was sure that Kira was well on his way out, I sat down on one of the drab, economical sofas which I bought to fill up space. Something was wrong with me. She was happy but it was the monster, Jealousy, which told me that if I were there, she might have…she could have been happier.

Why do you still love her, Athrun? A little voice in my head questioned me.

She doesn't care about you and she's happy. Like Kira said, you should just move on.

Because I love her, I answered dumbly. I didn't even know if that phrase had any meaning.

The little voice went away as I busied myself with the cleaning up. It was when I decided to turn on the evening news that my life took a turn, for better or maybe even for worse, who knew?

"In one week's time, Orb's beloved Princess Cagalli will be coming back from the PLANTS, along with her fiancé, Alex…"

Somehow, the rest of the world was blocked out of my head. All that I could hear was "Cagalli will be coming back…" over and over again.

Who knew love could drive someone to this extent?

Who knew?

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam or In The End by Linkin Park.

Author's Note: Well, I hope you liked it, the exciting part's coming soon. Like my ShinnxStellar fic, It's A ShinnStellar Thing, this was originally supposed to be a oneshot but never took the form of one. If you're interested, read my Dearka humor story as well, Nicol's NotSoDirty Little Secret. Thanks and tell me how you liked the first chapter of In The End.


	2. A New Hope

**In The End**

For the first time in ages, I was going to see Cagalli.

I was going to see the tomboyish blonde hair.

I was going to see the delightful golden eyes.

And I was going to see the sweet smile that wasn't meant for me but I had managed to convince myself otherwise.

She had invited me to lunch along with Kira, Lacus, Dearka, Miriallia and a few of her other friends from the Archangel. It wasn't the most ideal situation for me to convince her that I still loved her and that our relationship could work out but it was a wonderful opportunity nonetheless.

In my state of excited hopefulness, I decided to bring her some roses. The bouquet which I bought was a wonderful array or rose roses, a simple yet pleasing arrangement.

When I got to the restaurant, Kira and Lacus were already there but the rest weren't.

"Hey Kira, Lacus," I greeted, "where's Cagalli?"

"Well, she called and told me that she might be a little late due to some press issues."

I knew that all too well. When Cagalli and I were together, the press, in one way or another, found a way to hound her with questions regarding the peace treaty, some calamity somewhere and other things.

Cagalli arrived after a few minutes, looking hassled and trying to politely fend off the cameras and microphones being shoved under her nose.

The head of the restaurant acknowledged her presence by bringing a dozen or so waiters to shower her with rose petals and presented her with a bouquet a dozen times larger than the one I had brought.

"Welcome back, Princess Cagalli!" the man bellowed and clapped. Everyone clapped after him, Cagalli looking enchanting with rose petals in her hair and a slightly embarrassed look on her face.

I looked at her, rose petals and all, with the splendid bouquet in her hands. I looked at myself, a pitiful wreck on the inside, holding a small bouquet that could hardly be compared to that which she held.

Why did I feel the need to give her roses when there were already so many who did?

I excused myself and went to the bathroom to wash my face and dump the roses in the trash can. While I washed my face, a little voice in my head said "Maybe you were hoping that she would think yours was special." Maybe I did but then again, maybe I was getting too hopeful. In any case, if she didn't want the roses, I could use them to brighten up the apartment. No need to throw away something so nice.

When I went out, everyone had arrived and I took my seat at the far end of the table, beside Dearka and as far away from Cagalli as possible. I pretended not to notice the empty seat beside Kira who was beside the Princess.

Unfortunately, I was good at pretending not to notice things but Kira wasn't.

"Hey Athrun, have a seat over here!"

A smiled as much as I could and sat down beside Kira who was listening to Cagalli talk about Alex.

I didn't pay much attention and stared at my plate until the food arrived.

It wasn't until the end of the meal that Cagalli had the guts to finally speak to me. By that time, most of the guests were gone and only Kira, Lacus, Cagalli and I remained.

"So, Athrun, how are things going?" she said in a voice which was a little nervous and not business-like, in contrast to how most of her colleagues saw her.

"Its fine, really. I just moved to a bigger apartment and I got myself a job," I said, as frank as I could make it. There was really no need to prolong this conversation.

"I see, are you going out with anyone?"

Ah, I knew things would come to this and I had a ready answer.

"No, no one as of yet. I'm trying to get myself settled down first."

Yeah, the same thing I had said to Kira six months ago. Some things never change. You might think I had settled down quite nicely but apparently, not enough.

"Excuse me, Miss Attha, your meeting starts in half an hour," one of her bodyguards said, conveniently ruining the moment.

"Right, well, I'll be seeing you guys and it was nice seeing all of you again," she said and she flashed her sweet smile which wasn't meant for me but I had managed to, once more, convince myself otherwise.

"Cagalli," I managed to call out her name before she left.

"What is it, Athrun?" she asked unhurriedly, as if she didn't care all that much about her meeting.

"I...got you some roses," I managed to blurt out and held out the ones meant for my dining table.

"Thanks Athrun," she said as she smiled a smile meant for me this time and took the roses.

I didn't know if it was just me or if she left the giant bouquet under the table anyway.

I had to stop by the hardware store before I went home because the pipe under the sink had started to leak. All it took was a screwdriver and some screws, nothing I couldn't fix myself but of screws and screwdrivers, I had none.

By the time I had gone home, there were a couple of messages waiting for me on my phone. One was from Dearka, excitedly telling me that he was going to propose to Miriallia and was inviting me in advance to his wedding. He said something about Yzak already being best man but I had a special seat reserved up front.

Another message was from Kira, he was telling me about how much Cagalli liked the roses I gave her. You might think that if she had something to say to me, she didn't need Kira as her mediator. Nevertheless, I looked at the giant vase of roses which I took from the restaurant as a little souvenir.

The last message was from Cagalli. She said that she was sorry that things turned out this way and that they could still be friends if he wanted to. She also asked him to call her back and maybe they could go to the movies or something.

Typical Cagalli, always ruining things but always fixing them in the end. That was one of the things which I loved her for.

I picked up the phone and dialed her number.

"Hello, Cagalli Yula Attha speaking."

"Hey Cagalli."

"Athrun! Hey, what's up?"

"I got your message," I said as if that was the only news I had after two hours. I had other news, such as my broken sink but I didn't think that was interesting.

"Really? So, what do you say?"

"What time do I pick you up?"

"That's great, Athrun, oh just a sec."

I waited as Cagalli was being tickled by Alex. You could hear their giggles from a mile away, which was the distance I estimated between her house and mine.

"Hey, Athrun, I'm back," Cagalli said, a little out-of-breath.

"So, when do I see you?"

"Well, my schedule's a little busy for the next couple of days. How's Saturday?"

Saturday was a good three days away.

"Sure, Saturday's great," I replied

"Well, I'll call you back, Athrun, I have things to attend to. Thanks for calling; it was nice to hear your voice."

"The pleasure was mine," I said as gentlemanly as I could, making her giggle.

"See ya," she said and she put down the phone.

I put down the phone as well and I wondered if things would brighten up. Maybe fate was on my side. I sure wished it was.

But then again, who knew?

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam or, with the allusion to the title, Linkin Park.

Author's note: Aren't things looking brighter for Athrun? Thanks for the reviews, you guys!


	3. When Its Over

**In The End**

Things had patched up between Cagalli and I, although not entirely, it was enough to keep me hanging on. Things were almost like the old times when she would laugh at little things like if I forgot to zip up my pants.

We saw each other on a weekly basis, if we were lucky. Sometimes, her schedule was too hectic to allow our little rendezvous.

After our break up, she had not communicated to me for months but now, she gradually began telling me things once more. Sometimes, they were silly like how she tried to escape from her meeting the other day. Other times, she told me about she and Alex had started arguing. First about petty things like where the shampoo went. Then they became serious like where she and Athrun were going every week.

She told me that Alex was going away for two months to work out some businesses in Mexico.

For two months, Cagalli would be alone. Fate had given me my chance and I was going to take it.

Alex left the following week. It was despicable when he left; he had kissed Cagalli on the cheek and then attended to his cellphone.

The first chance I got, I decided to ring Cagalli and ask her if she was doing anything Friday night.

"Hello? Is Cagalli there?"

"Yeah, this is Cagalli speaking. What's up Athrun?"

"Well, I was wondering if you wanted to go out with me on Friday night."

"Go out with you? Like on a date?"

"Hmm…maybe," I said teasingly.

"Well, it depends where. It has to be expensive."

"Of course, anything for you, Princess."

"Shut up, Athrun," she said.

"Do I pick you up at 8?"

"Sure, see you then," she said then she put down the phone.

I grinned to myself. Things just may be looking up.

When Friday night arrived, I was ready for the night which would most likely change my life for the better. Everything went smoothly, I picked up Cagalli at her house and she looked dazzling in a simple blue evening gown. The dinner was scrumptious and Cagalli looked like she was having the night of her life.

When I was driving her home, she had a rather odd request.

"Hey Athrun, can we stop by the beach?"

I was odd because of the fact that the beach was out of the way. As in really Out of the way but I let her anyway, since she seemed to be enjoying herself.

The drive to the beach was silent. The only sound came from the squealing of the tires or the bump and occasional shriek of road kill.

When we arrived, Cagalli asked if I could take a walk with her on the shore.

"What's the matter?" I asked, I had known her long enough to hone my Cagalli-senses finely.

"I don't know, but it seems that things don't feel right with Alex anymore. In fact I'd much rather…be with you."

Yes! I could only do so much to stop myself from jumping around.

"Why don't you take some time to think, Cagalli? History may just repeat itself."

"I know that but I think this time, I'm sure."

Oh my god, I just had to stop from peeing myself.

"Cagalli."

"What's that, Athrun?"

I kissed her. For the first time in ages, I kissed her. It was like the first kiss all over again except this time, I savored it even more.

"So, I'll be seeing you tomorrow?" I asked when we (finally) parted.

"I'll be waiting," she said and we head back to the car so we could go home.

The very next day, I withdrew my savings and went to the jewelry store to buy Cagalli the prettiest, shiniest ring I could afford.

After some quarrels with the saleslady, I had decided upon a lovely emerald ring which was (barely) within my budget.

I decided to propose that very night, I wasn't going to waste my chances now.

As the night loomed nearer, the weather turned more foreboding. Dark clouds had gathered in the otherwise clear sky and it just so happened that my car overheated after last night's excursion.

The night brought about a heavy storm but I decided to just brave it and go anyway. I called Cagalli to tell her of my visit.

"Hey Cagalli."

"Hey Athrun, are you coming tonight?"

"Of course I am, don't think that a storm is going to stop me from going there."

"Alright, I'll be waiting. Just be careful."

"Of course, see you, Cagalli."

I donned all the protection I needed from the rain and slipped the ring into the innermost layer of my clothing.

The rain was pouring down harder than I expected. It was hard to tell the road from the sidewalk and twice had I apologized for bumping into a wall. I had thoughts of going back but the thought of Cagalli waiting for me was all that drove me to keep moving. I was halfway already anyway. If I went back, it would be the same thing if I continued.

When I got to the intersection a couple of kilometers away from her house, the rain seemed to pouring down harder than ever. In fact, it was so hard, I couldn't see the car that was speeding down the intersection. When I saw the headlights, it was only a couple of feet away from me. I guessed it was too late.

A million thoughts ran through my mind as the blackness spread through my vision like a virus. But the thought that first occurred to me was:

"_I'm sorry, Cagalli. I don't think I'll be able to make it to your house today."_

X

_In the end…_

Cagalli Yula Attha couldn't help herself as she felt the tears flow down from her face at Athrun Zala's funeral. She wore the ring that they found in his pocket when they found the body at the intersection a few kilometers away from her house. She was sorry, ever so sorry, to have broken his heart. It was almost too late but there was so much time wasted between them. Is this what Fate brought?

…_it doesn't really matter._

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam or with allusion to the title, Linkin Park or any of their songs.

Author's note:


End file.
